HC notice to Centre, MCI on contempt plea

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday issued
contempt notices to the Centre and the Medical Council of
India (MCI) for their failure to comply with its earlier order
to begin a three-year ‘Bachelor of Rural Health Care (BRHC)’
course for practicing medicine in primary health centres in
rural areas.

Justice Vipin Sanghi issued notices on a plea to begin
contempt of court proceedings against them and sought their
replies within four weeks.

In a petition filed through advocate Prashant Bhushan,
petitioner Meenakshi Gautam said rural people have no
worthwhile access to the medical help and face great risk to
their lives due to lack of qualified medical practitioners in
rural areas.

She said a division bench of the high court on November
10, 2010 had ordered the MCI to begin BRHC course, approved by
the health ministry, by March 2011 but nothing has been done
so far.

The court had given the MCI two months to finalise the
curriculum and syllabus of the three-and-half-year-long
Primary Healthcare Practitioner Course, approved by the Union
government, she added.

The course was named BRHC, she said adding the court had
given another two months to the Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare for the endorsement of the course syllabus.

"The course should have been introduced by March 2011 as
per the time-lines stipulated by the court in its order. No
such course has been introduced by the ministry as of
February 2012. The MCI apparently opposed the course in 2011
and is not willing to notify, the petitioner said, seeking
the court`s direction to begin the course.

Observing that "it is better to be treated by a doctor
than by a quack," the high court bench earlier had allowed the
Centre to go-ahead with the introduction of the bachelor
degree course to take care of primary health in rural areas
and had asked MCI to prepare a syllabus for it.

"To practice in primary health care centres, a person has
to complete the course and undergo a six-month internship
thereafter," the government had told the bench adding that it
had approved the course and the MCI had to implement the same.

The centre had further said after obtaining an experience
of five years in BRHC, if the person does a bridge course for
two years, he will be equivalent to a MBBS doctor.

The MCI had informed the bench that it will prepare the
syllabus within two months, after which the government had to
issue a notification in six weeks thereafter to begin the
course from academic year 2011-2012. PTI Observing that "it is better to be treated by a doctor than by a quack," the high court bench earlier had allowed the
Centre to go-ahead with the introduction of the bachelor
degree course to take care of primary health in rural areas
and had asked MCI to prepare a syllabus for it.

"To practice in primary health care centres, a person has
to complete the course and undergo a six-month internship
thereafter," the government had told the bench adding that it
had approved the course and the MCI had to implement the same.

The centre had further said after obtaining an experience
of five years in BRHC, if the person does a bridge course for
two years, he will be equivalent to a MBBS doctor.

The MCI had informed the bench that it will prepare the
syllabus within two months, after which the government had to
issue a notification in six weeks thereafter to begin the
course from academic year 2011-2012.